6 Motion Sickness Remedies

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On April 30, 2025

When it comes to preventing or stopping motion sickness, options include home remedies, over-the-counter medications, and motion sickness patches and wristbands.

1. Look Toward the Horizon

Motion sickness occurs when your brain gets conflicting signals from your body, your eyes, and your inner ear (home to your balance system).

The simplest way to quell your motion sickness is to align what your eyes see with what your body feels, says Erik Viirre, MD, PhD, a biomedical researcher and neurotologist at UC San Diego Health.

“If you’re down below deck on a boat, get up so you can see the horizon,” he advises. “If you’re reading in a car, sit up and look out the windows so you can see the motion of the car. Then what you see and what your inner ear motion sensor tells you will be in agreement.”

When researchers surveyed more than 4,400 participants for a study, they found that 46 percent reported some level of car motion sickness in the past five years. When including childhood experiences, that rate increased to 59 percent.

One of the main factors that contributed to car sickness was a visual activity like reading, writing, using a device, or watching a video, while riding in a car.

2. Cool Down

Hot, stagnant air can aggravate motion sickness, so a cool breeze can be helpful for preventing and easing it, Dr. Viirre says. You can also place a cool cloth on the back of your neck or on your forehead.

“I use that in my clinic all the time,” says Viirre, who notes that this directly affects the vagus nerve.

The vagus nerve (one of 12 cranial nerves that connect our brain to the rest of the body) delivers information to the brain that helps control digestion, mood, heart rate, and even your body’s inflammatory response.

It also processes signals and connects with part of the brain that controls nausea and vomiting.

Short-term exposure to very cold temperatures can help to stimulate the vagus nerve pathways and lower the body’s natural stress response, which can ease motion sickness symptoms, too.

3. Avoid Unpleasant Smells

To prevent or quell motion sickness, it’s important to avoid unpleasant smells, which also aggravate nausea.

“The smell of gasoline will set people’s motion sickness off, as will the smell of vomit,” Viirre says. This is another way a cool breeze can minimize motion sickness, Virre adds — by keeping smells away.

In the car-sickness study previously mentioned, cigarette or exhaust smells were also common factors that contributed to motion sickness.

On the flip side, the pleasant scent of rose reduced motion sickness in another study of 62 participants.

4. Eat Some Ginger

“Ginger is a popular natural remedy for nausea, and some people find that ginger tea, chews, or supplements help with motion sickness,” says Michael Genovese, MD, a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and the chief medical adviser of Ascendant, a drug and alcohol treatment center in New York City. Dr. Genovese helps patients manage neurological and physiological symptoms, particularly those involving the brain’s response to external stimuli, including stress, sensory input, and balance.

One study found that nearly 30 percent of 174 participants saw a significant improvement in motion sickness symptoms when they took ginger extract before traveling by car, bus, train, ferry, or subway.

But if you want to try ginger for motion sickness and opt for ginger ale, don’t drink it too quickly. “A lot of cold liquid in your belly is another aggravator of motion sickness, so you want to just have gentle sips,” Viirre says.

5. Try Over-the-Counter Motion Sickness Remedies

Over-the-counter scopolamine patches, which are placed behind your ear, are commonly used for long trips and can stop nausea before it even starts, Genovese says.

They work by blocking the effects of a natural substance called acetylcholine on the central nervous system — and should be applied four hours before the anticipated motion sickness.

“Over-the-counter medications like meclizine (Bonine) and dimenhydrinate (Dramamine) are also effective for prevention, though they can cause drowsiness,” Genovese adds.

There are also wristbands available that apply pressure at an acupressure point known as P6 — found about three fingers’ width below where your wrist begins — that’s believed to relieve nausea and prevent vomiting, but the research around this is low-quality.

“Some people swear by them, but the scientific evidence on their effectiveness is mixed,” Genovese says.

6. Talk to Your Doctor About Prescription Medications

In more extreme cases of motion sickness, your doctor may prescribe medication like promethazine, which is used to both relieve the symptoms of allergic reactions and to prevent and treat motion sickness. It should not be used in children younger than 2 years old because of the risk of potentially fatal breathing problems.

Promethazine is an antihistamine that calms your nervous system by blocking substances in your body that can cause nausea and vomiting.

“Some people do well with simple remedies, while others need more potent medications to prevent symptoms from interfering with travel or daily life,” Genovese says. “Talking to a doctor about the best approach is always a good idea, especially if motion sickness is a recurring issue.”

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